Jessie’s attempts at being the first one to defeat Masque in singles competition would end in failure as she would become her third victim and worse yet, the terrifying Bombshell was now the new Bombshell Internet Champion in a night that also saw Bill Barnhart’s Roulette Tittle reign end, however on the second stop of the Greek tour Jessie was getting a chance to get back in the drivers’ seat in her first match since the Masque one.
Her opponent was Levana Cade! The latest wrestler to graduate from the famed Go Gym, Levana came from out of nowhere alongside Jaycee McDonald to defy expectations and make it to the Semi-Finals of the Blast from the Past Tournament where they fell to eventual runners up Myra Rivers and Max Burke and Levana’s bad luck would continue during the Bombshell Gauntlet where she would be the second elimination, can Jessie get the win?
Outside of Jessie’s hotel room, Zakynthos, Greece
Tuesday the 5th of April 2022, 14:00pm
So yeah, this tour has been interesting already.
Sunday night’s Climax Control was one of the craziest nights I’ve seen since I joined SCW in 2012 and yes, that is saying something! I already know what my next match will be as I’m taking on the Go Gym Graduate Levana Cade in her first singles match since she joined the company during the last cycle and, well, it’s no secret that she and Jaycee McDonald came from out of nowhere to take the Blast from the Past Tournament by storm only just missing out of the finals in the process but I was set to be her first test as a singles competitor.
As for how I’ve felt since the match against Masque? I knew I had a tough match ahead of me going into that match and the fact that she was the one to dethrone Andrea Hernandez last night just reinforces that! Though it does make me question just who will be the one to dethrone Masque, or if anyone will even want to go after her once she’s done with Christina Rose but I guess Masque will cross that bridge when she comes to it.
I was heading out to grab something to eat when I spotted Adrienne and Katie outside of their hotel room, that shouldn’t be too alarming because their room was two doors down from mine with only Krystal’s room separating our rooms but it was the fact that they were carrying their luggage with them that caught my attention so I walked up to the two younger women.
”Going somewhere?” I asked them as I walked up to the duo and Katie looked up whilst Adrienne kept her head down. ”I mean, the Greek tour just started and you’re leaving already? It’s not like you work for another company like Ari.”
“We are heading back to Vegas Jessie.” Katie explained before Krystal came out of her room to see what was going on. “Adrienne needs some time to clear her head.”
”Okay but I don’t see why you couldn’t stay and do that here in Greece.” I commented with a confused look on my face before glancing over to Krystal as the Aussie walked up to us. ”And besides, you are a member of the SCW roster……..”
”Not anymore.” Adrienne chimed in as she finally turned towards us and I saw the look on the French girl’s face, to put it bluntly? She was miserable. ”I asked for my release at Climax Control and the bosses granted it, since I got left off the Blaze of Glory X card I’ve come to realize that my heart just isn’t in it anymore.”
”Adrienne, are you sure about this?” Krystal chimed in as she gave the red-head a sympathetic look. ”I know how much it sucks to get left off a card as big as Blaze of Glory but I was able to use it to motivate myself and the results speak for themselves.”
“It’s not that easy Krystal, your last match before Blaze of Glory X was a Double DQ draw to Char Kwan, Adrienne’s was a crushing loss to Masque.” Katie responded as she turned to us. “We’ll still be in the Las Vegas area and wherever Adrienne goes, I’ll follow, but that match did a serious number of her self confidence and getting left off the Blaze of Glory card was the straw that broke the camel’s back.”
”They can’t book everyone but I get it, you were probably hoping to at least get a chance to bounce back from your losing streak on the card, right?” I asked Adrienne and she hesitated before nodding. ”And just because you’re not on the roster doesn’t mean you’re not welcome at my home gym, I’ll see if I can talk to Keira about you getting in some reps at Hero Academy when that opens as well.”
”And I know this goes without saying but you are always welcome at the Go Gym, try not to forget that.” Krystal added and Adrienne nodded before they left without another word. ”I want to say that that was unexpected but I’d be lying, the other Go Gym graduates had noticed that Adrienne’s mental health was taking a turn for the worst.” Krystal commented with a sigh as she turned to me.
”Adrienne helped me prepare for my match against Masque at Inception V, I did pick up on some stuff like how she was comparing herself to you but I had no idea it was this bad.” I responded with a nod as I leaned against the wall. ”I guess that explains why Ari was able to sign that full time contract so soon after her win against Kaiju Rainbow.”
”Yeah, I guess, Ari has been wanting to move up to SCW for a while now but she didn’t want to leave Carter behind in SCU, I guess SCU’s closure forced her hand in that regard.” Krystal nodded in agreement as the Aussie folded her arms. ”I know there were comparisons between me and Adrienne when she debuted last November, foreign LGTBQ women who happen to be Go Gym Graduates and all, difference is my time on the indies helped me prepare for the pressure of competing on a big stage.”
”Whilst Adrienne’s SCW debut was her wrestling debut, in hindsight I’m surprised that she didn’t crumble sooner, still with her talent, especially at her age and experience level, she’ll get back on her feet, probably long before she returns to Vegas.” I sighed before frowning as I thought of something. ”And then there’s the timing of it all.”
”You mean your match against Levana, right?” Krystal asked and I nodded to confirm it. ”Don’t know what else I can tell you Jess but Levana is the latest wrestler to come through the Go Gym and you saw how well she did in Blast from the Past, she and Jaycee could’ve been finalists if they had faced Candy and Goth instead of Myra and Max.” Krystal added with a shrug as she made her way towards her hotel room. ”And then she bombed out in the Bombshell Gauntlet.”
”Sounds to me like there’s a common thread developing among the Go Gym Graduates lately, you, Adrienne and Levana especially.” I commented and Krystal gave me a curious look. ”They are all coming in with great expectations only for reality to slap them in the face, you had your losing streak followed by your Roulette Title reign and how that ended, Levana took the Blast from the Past Tournament by storm and Adrienne came in with the hype of being the latest graduate on SCW’s main roster.”
”Yeah and we saw how that ended for Adrienne, part of me wonders if she would’ve been better off starting in SCU like Ari did but then again, SCU is closing soon so that’s not really accurate.” Krystal nodded as she got the idea. ”As it stands right now Adrienne had the worst run out of the three of us, but Levana still has a ton of momentum from Blast from the Past and I still have my win over Evie to hang up on my wall, really depends on whether Levana’s head is still in the game.”
”If it isn’t and she still thinks that she’s got an easy win based on my win/loss record, she’ll be in for another realty check.” I added before we returned to our rooms, in my case it was to watch Disney’s Hercules with Shane.
Is it sacrilegious to watch a film that takes a hatchet to the established Greek myth whilst staying in Greece? Maybe but it was still a damn good Disney movie!
Zante Island Tour, Zakynthos, Greece
Wednesday the 6th of April 2022, 16:00pm
When in Rome, do as Romans do, but when in Greece?
Yeah, that’s a long way around the fact that me, Jake, Shane, Francisco, Ari, Cassie, Makayla and Krystal are doing a land and sea tour of Zakynthos or Zante or whatever it’s called! Seriously is this place the Chrystal Hilton of the Greek Islands?
Not that I’m about to say that out loud! Not with two Greek women in my party with me!
We finished the land tour about half an hour ago and right now we’re doing the sea tour which was going to take us the rest of the day, Jake and Shane were sitting next to each other in the chair in front of me and Cassie was sitting in next to me leaving Makayla and Krystal to sit next to me.
”One million bottles of beer on the wall, one million bottles of beer, you take one down, pass it around……..” Cassie sung to herself silently (to the point where I couldn’t really tell if the wrestling trainee was a good singer or not) whilst clearly bored out of her mind. ”It would still be more interesting than this fucking tour!” Cassie grunted in frustration catching the attention of the other women on the tour, Jake and Shane did look up but they decided to leave it to us. ”Why, oh why didn’t I stay at the hotel?”
”You’ve been in your hotel room since we arrived in Zante.” Ari pointed out as she turned to Cass and the eighteen year old folded her arms. ”And you didn’t complain when we did that food tour last week!”
”That was a food tour so at least I got to enjoy some food!” Cassie protested and I had to admit, I was wondering if Cassie had ADHD that had gone undetected due to her weed use and, well, Greece’s laws on weed forcing her to go cold turkey for five weeks was bringing those problems to the forefront, off course I’m no shrink and it’s probably just a case of Cass being bored. ”But this has to be the most boring place I’ve ever seen and it’s supposedly a party island! I could’ve gone drinking with Fenris instead!”
”Cass you haven’t even tried alcohol yet because your still to young back home, if you got into a drinking contest with Fenris he’d leave you outside of me and Makayla’s hotel room after drinking you under the table after two rounds.” Makayla pointed out as she ran a hand down her face. ”And that’s IF you’re lucky!”
”In other words, you’d be better off trying to slam Tempest than trying to drink with Fenris.” Krystal chimed in and Cassie sighed in defeat. ”Just try to have a good time, okay?”
”Fine, but don’t be surprised if I keep complaining.” Cassie admitted defeat and I chuckled under my breath which Cassie caught on too. ”Something funny Jess?”
”Just the fact that you can’t seem to enjoy the view, Ari did pay good money to get us on this tour after all.” I pointed out and Cassie said nothing in response, there was part of me that was tempted to make the same old tired millennial joke that has been made on Social Media more times than I cared to count but I’d probably react the same way as Cass if I was on this tour when I was her age. ”Besides, it’ll be over before you know it.”
”I hope so!” Cass sighed in response and the rest of the tour passed without incident.
Local restaurant, Zante, Greece
Thursday the 7th of April 2022, 18:00pm
Another week’s almost over, then again when you’ve been in SCW for as long as I have, the weeks start to blend together after a while.
Still, I am enjoying my time in Greece in much the same way that I’ve enjoyed my time here the last few times SCW came to Greece even if I do need the occasional translator and/or English speaking local to help me order stuff when I’m eating out.
The past few times, I’ve had either Ari (whose Greek-American) or Makayla (whose Greek-Australian) helping me out with that but considering that this was a one on one date with my husband? Yeah we had to rely on an English speaking local this time around, and luckily for us there was an English speaker among the wait staff.
“Gotta say, I haven’t had that much exposure to Greek food aside from the other times that we’ve been to Greece with SCW.” Shane admitted after we had made our orders and the waiter went off to put our orders through. “But every time we come to Greece I can’t wait to try the local food.”
”Maybe we should look into some Greek metal festivals whilst we’re here.” I commented with a grin after taking a sip of my drink. ”Either that or look into moving here after I decide to hang up the wrestling boots for good.” I added and Shane gave me a surprised look. ”Something I said?”
“Just surprised to hear you talk about retirement Jess.” Shane commented before he shifted his weight. “I know your in your early thirties but Myra’s in her late thirties and still going strong.”
”Myra also wrestles a technical, grounded style, I’ve been wrestling the same high flying, hardcore style since I graduated from wrestling school at the age of eighteen.” I pointed out as I fixed my ponytail since there were still a few lose bangs hanging in front of my eyes. ”They call it high risk for a reason and sooner or later, my wrestling style will catch up with my body, I can’t keep doing this stuff forever.”
“That doesn’t mean you have to retire I mean hell there’s still plenty of stuff in SCW you haven’t done.” Shane pointed out as I glanced at the menu to try to decide on my main course. “What’s stopping you from just changing up your style?”
”The fact that the opportunities for a grand slam are getting slimmer, the Mixed Tag Titles are being deactivated and it’s becoming clearer by the day that the World Bombshell Title scene has passed me by.” I responded as I let out a deep breath. ”Right now the only conceivable goal I can achieve is the Hall of Fame and it’s up to Mark and Christian who gets inducted.”
“And let’s face it, you haven’t been on good terms with them for years, something that peaked during the entirety of 2018.” Shane pointed out and I nodded in agreement. “I mean hell, they inducted the Mean Girls before you!”
”Yeah, induct the group that almost reduced the Bombshell division to a laughing stock over the woman who’s been working her petite ass off since she arrived in the company and is fast approaching her tenth year anniversary of her debut for the company, makes perfect fucking sense to me!” I grumbled under my breath before shaking my head.
“There’s a chance that I’ll end up sleeping on the couch for saying this.” Shane admitted sheepishly and I gave him a raised eyebrow. “But it sounds like you’ve grown bitter.”
”Maybe I have, but I’ve definitely left the Bombshell Division in a better state than I found it in when I arrived in 2012!” I pointed out as we waited for our food. ”And with women like Myra, Andrea and Amber occupying the top of the food chain, rising stars like Kat Jones, Krystal, Masque Ari and newcomers like Kayla Richards and Levana Cade rising through the ranks? I’d say that the future of the Bombshell Division is in good hands.”
“And I doubt you’ll find many who’ll disagree with you.” Shane nodded in agreement as the waiter brought our food over. “But for now, let’s eat.”
”Let’s! And as for the couch thing, don’t worry, I’ll be sure to keep it nice and warm for you when we return to Vegas.” I teased Shane who shook his head with a chuckle before we dug in.
Walking through the streets of Zante, Greece
Friday the 8th of April 2022, 14:00pm
*promo time*
A tale of two Bombshells.
”I doubt there’s many current Bombshells who realize this, but for those who need a reminder, I’ve been in SCW for nearly ten years! Hell, I’ve been wrestling since certain roster members were toddlers at most! Does that make me feel old as fuck? Absolutely! But it does bring to mind a story I’ve heard from Ancient Greece, probably fictional since this is Ancient Greece we’re talking about let’s face it, the ancient sources aren’t always reliable but hear me out.”
I stated as I walked through the streets.
”An old man was wandering through the Olympic Games looking for a seat, every other Greek in attendance Jeered at him yet it was the Spartans, the feared warrior society famous for the battle of the 300, some who were younger, some who were older, who offered their seats to the old geezer! The crowd applauded but the Spartans knew that anyone who had been around as long as him deserved respect, something that I’ve been denied because if my win/loss record over the years in SCW! Don’t believe me? Ask our resident historian Mercedes Vargas! She might get some details wrong but she is generally on the money!”
And onto my point.
“That brings me to my next match in SCW were I find myself standing across the ring from a woman who probably would’ve jeered at me in the story I just told, Levana Cade!” I commented as I flipped some hair over my shoulder. ”Some say that Krystal Wolfe had a rookie year that most rookies would kill for but you Levana came close to surpassing that which makes sense when you consider that both you and Krystal are graduates of the World Famous Go Gym! You were this close to being the only rookie to ever win Blast from the Past, hell your team eliminated Amber Ryan’s team from the tournament! But then, you got eliminated in the semi-finals.”
I said as I shook my head.
”I acknowledge that there’s a lot that can be said for how the match between you and Jaycee and Amber and Hitamashi ended but picking up the win over the then World Bombshell Champion is no small feat regardless of how it came about! Hell, I even said on Twitter that regardless of how the rest of the tournament turned out, you and Jaycee were pretty much locks for Future Star of the Year but something happened between your Semi-Final match against Myra Rivers and Max Burke and the Bombshell Gauntlet at Blaze of Glory X. suddenly you went from the young Bombshell that everyone had their eyes on as a future champion to being unceremoniously eliminated from the Bombshell Gauntlet!”
Disappointing isn’t it?
”The only person who was eliminated from the Gauntlet faster than you Levana was Chloe Benton and let’s face it! She’s a sweetheart but she had no business being in that match and the fact that she set a new record for fastest elimination in SCW history in the process just makes her presence in that match stick out even more! So, to quote one of my favourite YouTube channels, What Happened? Were you still feeling the sting of coming so close to the Blast from the Past Finals only to fall at the final hurdle? I’ve seen it happen way too many times since I joined the company Levana and it’s never a pretty site!”
What am I talking about!
”And no, this phenomenon doesn’t care how pretty the wrestler in question is! You are the latest in a long line of young wrestlers who enter the company with high hopes and dreams only to feel the cold slap of reality before long! It happened to Krystal Wolfe and she’s been thriving since she got over that hump, it happened to Adrienne Beaufort and she left because the pressure was affecting her mental health! It’s no coincidence that I’m using two of your fellow Go Gym Graduates as examples here Levana so it begs the question, doesn’t it? Will you come back and thrive like Krystal? Or will you crumble under the pressure like Adrienne?”
As I walked down the streets I spotted young Greek couple sporting SCW Merchandise (a Jessie Salco t-shirt on the woman and a Ben Jordan shirt on the guy) and they stopped me upon recognizing me.
“Hey aren’t you Jessie Salco?” The woman asked upon recognizing me from her top (and obviously watching SCW) and I nodded as I turned to face them. “Can we get your autograph?”
”Off course!” I responded as they got a pen and paper out and I took it from them. ”Who am I making this out too?”
“Elena and Jason.” The guy responded and I signed their autographs without a second thought. “We’re looking forward to your match against Levana on Sunday.”
”Really? I never would’ve guessed.” I joked whilst motioning to Elena’s top and they laughed in response. ”What are your thoughts on my opponent?”
“Levana did great in the Blast from the Past Tournament but since then she’s crashed and burned.” Elena responded with a shrug and Jason nodded in agreement. “We’re not sure what happened to her.”
“I didn’t mind, I always thought that she came off as way to arrogant, like Krystal when she was with Matthew and Marty but turned up to eleven.” Jason chimed in and now that I thought about it that was accurate as fuck. “I hope to see you beat some humility into her, after all you’ve been in SCW for so long that you’ve seen it all and probably done it all.”
”Not as much as I’d like but I have, haven’t I? As for beating some humility into her? Well, we’ll see about that, won’t we?” I asked them and they nodded before they walked off and I resumed my promo. ”That calls to mind the story I mentioned earlier in the promo, about the old man and the Spartans, so many young wrestlers want respect without earning it when I’ve earned it through my years of hard work in service to the SCW brand, you had a great run in Blast from the Past Levana, but that only tales up one part of the year, it’s what you do throughout the rest of the year that ultimately counts!”
It's the sad truth really.
”Your SCW Career so far can basically be summed up as this Levana, expectation vs. reality, after you defied everyone’s expectations by not only making it past the first round but beating Amber Ryan along the way, you felt the cold, hard slap of reality when you lost in the Semi-Finals and you haven’t been the same since! Hell, you were the favourite to win the Bombshell Gauntlet based purely on your Blast from the Past performance and we all saw how that ended for you, it’s almost like you haven’t recovered from that setback, isn’t it Levana?”
It's that simple.
”When we step into the ring for our match on Sunday Levana, I don’t want the Levana Cade who got eliminated from the Bombshell Gauntlet almost as quickly as Chloe Benton, I want the Levana Cade who nearly took the Blast from the Past Tournament by storm and won the thing from out of nowhere because at least I know that Levana Cade will give me a fight worthy of the Bombshell Division! I don’t know where that Levana has gone but you had better find her fast if you want a chance at winning this match because she must be shaking her head in embarrassment at sharing the same name and body as the Levana who let herself get eliminated that easily, but tell me Levana, what would that Levana say if you lost to the Bombshell with the worst win/loss record in SCW?”
And with that I decided to wrap things up.
”Would she be like the jeering Greeks? Mocking you for losing to an older, wiser opponent who happened to have such an abysmal record? Or would she be like the Spartans? Respecting me for being an old soldier and getting the better of her younger opponent? There’s only one way that question can be answered and that’s to step into the ring with Jessie Salco because this old soldier still has a few tricks left up her sleeve and when I strike you down like Blood Lightning, who will the Greeks jeer at then? The old soldier Jessie Salco? Or the young upstart Levana Cade? I’ll see you in the ring!”
I returned to my hotel room as the scene fades.
